St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Delaware is in the process of moving to renewable energy to supply all its electrical needs.

On Sept. 11, work got underway to install 112 solar panels on the roof of the building, which is home to a congregation that traces back 200 years.

“We’ve been wanting to go solar for some time, and now that the Inflation Reduction Act came in, we can get a 30% direct payment from the IRS after the completion of the project,” said Louis Iverson, the chair of the Stewardship Committee that got the project rolling. “That, all of a sudden, put a 30% sale on going solar for us, so the time to pay it back has reduced substantially.”

A longtime ecologist in his professional life, Iverson said the church is “in the business of caring for God’s creation,” and the move to solar energy was a suitable project to do just that. He also noted the building, given its age, is not exactly energy efficient. With panels soon in place, the building will have all its electrical needs met with solar energy.

From an economic standpoint, Iverson said that once the project is paid off in approximately 10 years, the church will no longer have to pay for electricity.

All the modules, which are being installed by Columbus-based Ecohouse Solar, are expected to be in place soon. Iverson said there will still be some final steps to complete before the modules begin generating electricity, but he estimated everything will be in place in a couple of weeks.

The project is expected to cost $117,040, although the 30% reduction will lower that cost considerably. To help finance the project, the church created a program allowing donors to purchase an individual panel for $517. Iverson estimated approximately 36 of the 112 panels have been purchased by donors. The rest of the financing has come through the church’s funds for property and building improvements.

In addition to what it will mean for St. Mark’s in the coming years, Iverson hopes the project will encourage other churches in the community to follow suit.

“We’re hopefully setting a precedent,” he said. “This is economic as well as ecological. It would make sense for almost any church to do, in my opinion. In 10-15 years, you get free energy in addition to the fact you’re taking all those fossil fuels out of the equation.”

Iverson later said the building will still utilize gas to heat the building for the time being but hinted at that possibly changing down the line. “We’re working on that,” he said.

Reach Dillon Davis at 740-413-0904. Follow him on Twitter @DillonDavis56.